PDCW46/20080302
Meeting of the ”Core” March 2, 2008. Sylvia mentioned that she did not plan to run for an Eboard position again at the next reorganization. There was some discussion of trying to find more progressives to serve on the board in her stead as she will not run again. A lot of discussion about candidates remaining on the board while running. District Policy Discussion :We need to ask Javier to put on these concerns on the agenda. In general, the recommendations we would like to make are strictly intended to improve the processes and remove any appearance of impropriety and ensure fairness regardless of any individual positions of authority or candidacy. This is not personal. This is about the policy of the district organization. The possibility is that any of these concerns might happen in future campaigns, even if it is only the perception of them happening. People that are concerned with process, which is highly visible and of great concern these days, have a responsibility to raise these questions. Given the history of this district with regards to board members in competition with non-board members in previous races, we should bring these points up for a fair and open hearing, rather than let the questions stay hidden from plain view and outside of honest scrutiny. Problem 1: Gerry is the chair of the program committee and all of the program recommendations that come to the Executive Board. :Note: Gerry and Javier work together to discuss and present the options to the Eboard. Policy concern: An unscrupulous candidate would have the potential to use that position to recommend and schedule program items that could help his or her candidacy. The district organization should set a policy to remove the ability of anyone running for any office to give themselves an unfair advantage over any other candidate in a primary election campaign. Proposed policy solutions: *Committees must meet and provide recommendations to the executive board in an open and fair process. *All meetings of all committees need to be listed in both the website and in the Demogram, if possible, and open to anyone that would like to attend. Problem 2: Gerry is the 2nd Vice Chair of the District. Policy concern: We WANT people to get involved in the district organization, and to use the experience gained from being involved as a stepping stone to elected office in order to push our platform ideas into legislative priorities. That's not the issue. However, an unscrupulous candidate could potentially use a position on the executive board as leverage on literature and otherwise to give the perception of sole support from the district organization prior to the endorsement vote. Giving the appearance of using a position to give themselves a boost above other candidates is a potential problem. We don't want it to seem like experience within the eboard gives an unfair advantage or is the only way to win such a seat. Jim McIntire came in as a candidate from the outside, and has been a great representative in the House over the past decade. For example, both of the current candidates are using their experience within the district in announcements and literature. :Vice Chair, 46th District Democrats - http://gerrypolletforstaterep.org/ :Pollet is vice-chair of the 46th District Democrats. He and his wife, Janet Miller (who previously chaired the 46th District Democrats for six years), have worked to build the district Democratic organization for nearly two decades, and are very active in work to improve public schools and school funding. - Announcement email of campaign. :Over the past five years (2003-2007) I served as chair of the local 46th District Democrats, where I led the organization through a period of tremendous growth, modernization and increased grassroots activism. In recognition of my leadership, I was honored as “Chair of the Year” by the Washington State Democrats and as “Democrat of the Year” by the King County Democrats. - http://www.scottwhite.com/index.php?page=display&id=114 This issue has a history of discussion within the district. From the minutes of May 3, 2005: :Discussion Items: :Use of official 46th title for personal endorsements: Who speaks officially for the District? Some candidates, for instance show individual endorsements, with affiliation indicated for identification purposes. Another case in point is a letter to the editor. If the letter is signed by someone using their elected office, it suggests that they speak for the district. Gail asked what our policy is in this respect? Scott makes it a practice never to endorse a candidate using his title as District chair. Scott understands this as an honor system. Betty's experience is that members want to know where elected officials stand, but they also expect even-handed treatment from officials. Betty sees this as a measure of ethical behavior and proper use of office. Proposed policy solutions: *Candidates should suspend their official positions on the eboard during their campaign for office. *Committee chairs should appoint one of the other committee members to be chair during their campaign. Problem 3: District membership information and other organizational database records reside in one location, easily accessible by Gerry and seem to be controlled by one person who is close to Gerry. Policy concern: An unscrupulous candidate could use the district database information in an unfair way to help their own campaign, while not granting the same access to the information to other candidates who are eligible for an endorsement by the district. *''What is the current policy? Official district organization policies should be posted on the district website, and/or be available for review by the membership.'' Proposed policy solutions: *The district could rent an official office during this campaign season where the official informational database and other information resources are in a neutral place. *The district should have an official policy that describes what information from our databases is available to candidates, and that policy should be posted on the website. *The district should have a backup of the database(s) in a safe place. ---- Again, this is not personal. We have an opportunity to address potential weaknesses in policy that could be seen as unfairly tipping the balance between two great candidates for an elected position. The district organization must be seen as fair and open in process and policy so that each campaign has a fair chance of getting an endorsement as well as winning the primary race and the general election. The purpose of the district organization is and should be to encourage participation in the political process by anyone within the 46th district, and having open and fair processes and policies will help with that purpose.